Podcast Summary
Doing your best with what you have: Identify and connect with rising individuals, invest in relationships, and focus on your vision to set yourself up for future success
No matter where you are in life or what resources you have, you can still make progress and achieve your goals by doing your best with what you have right now. Dan Shabelle, a successful author and media personality, emphasized this quote by Theodore Roosevelt during his interview on the School of Greatness Podcast. Dan and Lewis reminisced about their early days of networking in 2007 and how staying focused and believing in their vision helped them both succeed in the long run. They discussed the importance of identifying and connecting with people who are on the rise and investing in relationships. By doing what you can with what you have where you are, you can set yourself up for future success.
Building relationships in the digital age: Patience and persistence are key in forming digital relationships for personal or professional growth
Building relationships in today's digital age goes beyond traditional face-to-face interactions. The internet provides an opportunity to connect with people, build relationships, and establish a network over time. For introverts, this can be particularly beneficial as it allows for easier and less stressful connection-building. The speaker, who has interviewed over 1300 people since 2007, emphasizes the importance of patience and persistence in establishing these connections. Whether it's for personal or professional growth, the digital world offers a unique and effective way to connect with people, gradually forming meaningful relationships.
Expanding network leads to opportunities: Building a wide range of experiences and interests enables you to relate to anyone, leading to sales and new opportunities. Focusing on personal branding and mission helps connect with target audience and create mutually beneficial business relationships.
Building a vast network and being relatable to various people can lead to more opportunities and sales. When starting out, Dan built multiple projects and wrote for numerous publications to connect with as many individuals as possible. He believes that having a wide range of experiences and interests enables him to relate to anyone, creating a faster bridge for building relationships. This relatability leads to sales and new opportunities, making it a valuable asset in business. Dan's interest in personal branding stemmed from his desire to stand out in a competitive job market. He recognized the importance of having a strong online presence and a unique identity to secure opportunities. A brand, according to Dan, is a representation of one's identity, mission, and overall vision. By focusing on his personal brand and mission, Dan has been able to connect with millennials throughout their careers and help companies work better with them, creating a mutually beneficial business model.
Standing out in interviews with a professional image: Investing in personal branding can lead to job opportunities and career growth by making you stand out and build trust and credibility with potential employers.
Building a strong personal brand can open doors and create opportunities. The speaker shares how they differentiated themselves during college interviews by presenting their work in a professional portfolio and business card, which helped them stand out and secure internships. However, it wasn't until they tried to get a job after graduation that they fully understood the importance of branding. Their resume with internships at well-known companies like Reebok caught the attention of potential employers, and they realized that brands matter and can open doors to new opportunities. Throughout their career, the speaker has focused on associating their personal brand with reputable brands to build trust and credibility, leading to work with Fortune 1000 companies. The long-term play of investing in personal branding paid off and continues to do so in their career.
Personal branding leads to unexpected opportunities: Dedication to personal branding can lead to new roles and career advancement within a company
Building a personal brand outside of work can lead to unexpected opportunities and transformational growth within a company. Jason's dedication to personal branding through blogging, writing, and social media led him to create the first social media position at his workplace, EMC, in 2007. This experience not only made him an expert in his field but also inspired him to write and self-publish his first book, "2.0," despite initial rejections. By staying passionate and persistent, Jason turned his hobby into a unique position and a successful career. The interconnected nature of his personal and professional pursuits allowed him to enjoy his work and create value for his company.
Believing in oneself and putting in immense effort: Persistence and self-reliance are crucial for a successful book launch. Secure sponsors and stay focused to overcome rejections and challenges, ultimately making your mark in the publishing industry.
Persistence and self-reliance are key to a successful book launch. The speaker shared their experience of launching two books, the first one with less marketing power but easier to break through the noise, and the second one with more firepower but faced numerous rejections and challenges. They emphasized the importance of believing in oneself, putting in immense effort, and securing sponsors to make things happen. The speaker's determination and hustle paid off, resulting in impressive sales and recognition from major publications. Despite the challenges, they remained focused and ultimately succeeded in making their mark in the publishing industry.
Investing in personal brand pays off: Creating content, adding value, and putting in the hours builds credibility and opens up opportunities. A strong personal brand fosters trust and leads to recognition in your industry.
Building a personal brand is crucial for creating opportunities and gaining recognition in your industry. The story shared highlights the importance of putting in the hours, creating content, and adding value to establish credibility. In the speaker's experience, having a strong personal brand led to being featured in a well-known magazine, which ultimately opened up new opportunities. The power of a brand lies in the trust it builds with potential collaborators and employers, making it an essential investment for personal and professional growth.
Investing in a personal brand pays off: Building a strong personal brand takes time and effort, but it opens doors to opportunities and credibility.
Investing in building a strong personal brand is crucial for long-term success. This was emphasized through the examples of Dan Shawbell and Grant Cardone. Both individuals recognized the importance of a powerful brand in creating opportunities and establishing credibility. Building a brand takes time and effort, but the payoff is increased opportunities and the ability to position oneself for luck. A career is an accumulation of daily decisions, and the more effort put in early on, the more opportunities that will come. It's important to keep reinventing oneself to stay relevant in the marketplace. Even though we may not be working towards a specific goal at the moment, we should always be thinking and creating relationships that could support our future aspirations.
Finding a niche audience and developing expertise: To build a powerful brand, focus on a specific niche audience and continually develop expertise in a valuable area. Stay informed and network to maintain expertise. Consistently review industry news for relevance.
Building a powerful brand requires finding a specific niche audience to serve and developing expertise in a valuable area. This is essential for standing out in today's marketplace and setting oneself up for success in the future. A continuous effort to learn and network is necessary to maintain expertise and stay informed. Creating a consistent morning routine, such as reviewing industry news, can help keep one relevant and informed without getting too distracted. The example given illustrates the importance of evolving a brand as personal passions and interests change, but the foundation of a strong brand is built on serving a specific audience with expertise.
Emphasizing the importance of continuous learning and staying informed: Daily reading and learning are essential for maintaining relevancy and expertise. Acquiring technical, business, or entrepreneurial skills can increase employability and lead to higher-level positions. Corporations and education must work together to address the skills gap.
Continuous learning and staying informed are crucial for maintaining relevancy and building expertise in any field. The speaker, who built a business based on relevancy and research, emphasizes the importance of making reading and learning a daily habit to sustain a strong value proposition to the audience. Furthermore, accumulating knowledge and connecting the dots between various niches can lead to more opportunities and higher-level positions. However, the education system does not adequately prepare students for the workforce by not aligning with corporate America's needs. Students should focus on acquiring technical, business, or entrepreneurial skills to bridge the skills gap and increase their employability. Corporations and the education system must work together to address this issue and create a more effective and aligned system.
Collaboration between schools, HR, and businesses: Building relationships can benefit everyone: companies gain potential employees, students get job opportunities, and schools enhance curriculum. Authenticity and transparency in individuals and brands are essential for success.
Creating a cooperative relationship between schools, HR companies, and businesses can greatly benefit everyone involved. It can help companies build a strong pipeline of potential employees, provide students with job opportunities, and enhance the curriculum of schools to better prepare students for the workforce. However, making this happen can be challenging due to political complexities. Another key takeaway is the importance of authenticity and transparency in individuals and brands. Those who are not afraid to share unfiltered perspectives and provide valuable insights, like James Altucher, Tim Ferriss, and Ryan Holiday, have built impressive followings. Brands like Zappos, which prioritize cultural fit and personality in hiring, are also making a significant impact. In summary, fostering collaboration between educational institutions, HR companies, and businesses, and embracing authenticity and transparency in individuals and brands, can lead to positive outcomes for all parties involved.
Importance of pursuing passions and being the best: Dan Shabott emphasizes the importance of pursuing jobs you're passionate about and striving to be the best in your field to compete and live a fulfilling life.
It's important to pursue jobs that you're passionate about and value, rather than settling for ones you don't want. Dan Shabott, a personal branding expert, emphasized this during the podcast interview. He shared his gratitude for being able to live in New York City and the idea of returning the favor to his parents by not letting them pay for things anymore. Shabott's definition of greatness is being the best at what you do for a specific audience. He believes that if you don't strive to be the best, you'll struggle to compete. Overall, the conversation highlighted the importance of personal growth, pursuing passions, and being the best in your field. To learn more about Dan Shabott and his work, check out his blog and book "Promote Yourself: The New Rules for Career Success."